The Station Agent

People had told me for a long time that this was a really good movie, and truth be told I had no reason to not watch it, there just always something else on that I would watch. So I moved this to the top of my list and watched it as soon as I could.

As everyone said it was good, very good. I can really appreciate character driven and character centered plots. The story is about a man who is a dwarf named Finbar (Peter Dinklage) who after his only friend and boss dies moves to an old train depot left to him in the mans will. He isn't a shut in per say but certainly just wants to be left alone. He is immediately befriended by Joe, who for the time keeps the friendship pretty one sided. Finbar is also introduced in a rather extreme manner to Olivia, who after trying to smooth out some initial problems they had together admits to him that her son died a few years earlier. Most of the story ambles along with two basic things happening, Finbar slowly starts to come out of his shell while Olivia slowly goes into one of her own, with Joe keeping the movie fairly light, while still having problems of his own.

Its basically about three lost souls who find each other and find a bond between them that has each of them lean on the other thus keeping them all propped up. The performances are great, everyone in it certainly puts forth their best efforts to portray these delicate and passionate characters. One thing I really liked that, and that I was very impressed with is that Finbar is a dwarf, but if you changed him to be someone with Turrets Syndrome, or a disfigurement....or anything that would make him different it would only take minor changes to the script to make it keep working. It's of course important that he is a dwarf, but it makes a very good point for anyone who is different and how their lives are.

Its funny but still really sad, and its quiet. There's even a scene where Olivia says that they don't need to talk, they can just eat. Finbar and Olivia are just naturally like that, but you get them, and Joe never seems to stop talking, but he is by no means flat, he is just as complex as the other two. Its a great indie film, and shows that you don't really need a lot of money to succeed when making a movie. 8/10 stars.

Director: Thomas McCarthy

Starring: Peter Dinklage, Bobby Cannavale, Patricia Clarkson, Michelle Williams